The Princess of Hearts
by writingdancingandliving
Summary: We all know the Queen of Hearts, but what was life like for Hera when she was the Princess of Hearts? How will she get along with her three sisters, annoying brother, and hysteric mother, when she is so hysteric herself?
1. The Princess Hera

Hera relaxed against the soft sofa, letting the cushy pillows surround her. Opening her book, she inhaled the wonderful smell that came with an old book. She started to read the first sentence, but hadn't even finished when she heard a screech from down the hall.

"Hera?" her mother's voice called. "Hera! Where are you? Get in here!" Hera, frustrated, threw down her book and stormed into her mother's bedroom. Her mother lay sick in bed, sneezing and coughing, and complaining more than usual. "Oh Hera, my princess, I love you dearly but you trouble me so. Can't you do something useful and get me some water?" The princess could hardly handle this; Hera had a horrid temper and was in hysterics half the time.

"Why, mother, why? I am a princess, not a maid!" She stomped her feet, and shrieked as loudly as she could. "Get one of your servants to do it." Tears came into her eyes, and she sat down on the bed, next to her mother. "I don't know why you treat me so. I just want some time alone."

"My goodness child!" her mother exclaimed, and shoved her off the bed. Hera toppled over, landing on her hands and knees, then collapsed into an upset mess on the ground. "How have I raised you like this, you ungrateful little witch? Already a young woman of sixteen, a princess too, and you don't know how to act." With this statement, Hera let out a longer, louder sob. Her mother's voice softened. "I'm sorry, my dear. You are just so trying."

"Some queen you are!" Hera screamed, and fled the room in passionate anger.

She ran up to her chamber, and flung herself onto her bed. Tears streamed down her face, and her forehead throbbed with a horrible headache. She had forgotten about her calming book and comfortable chair; her thoughts were now entangled with how hard her life was. In the next room, her sister, Adrienne, heard the loud crying. She knocked on the door, and ignored Hera's vulgar "Go away!"

"Hera, whatever is the matter?" she asked, sitting across from her sister on the bed. Hera looked up to see Adrienne, then turned away in disgust.

"Oh, it's you," she sneered.

"I'm only your sister," Adrienne defended herself, not keen to rudeness.

"Yes! That's the problem! You're my sister." Hera got up and started imitating Adrienne, walking around in a ridiculous and proud manner. "Look at me, everyone! See the perfect little princess! Don't pay attention to my three younger sisters, because I'm twenty-one and just wonderful! I can dance and sing, and I learn all my lessons too! I'm mothers favorite!" At the end of this performance Hera collapsed again into a heap of tears on the ground. Adrienne paused to collect herself and take a deep breath, knowing that her little sister really was just a mess of emotions and ridiculous notions.

"What is this really all about, Hera?" she asked.

"Mother-mother asked me-me to get her a glass of water!" Hera stuttered between sobs. "When she could-could have had a servant bring her o-one." She stopped crying for a second to scream "She would have never asked you!" And then dropped her head to the floor again. "We all know that when mother dies she'll pick you to take her place as the Queen of Hearts and send the rest of us to rule the Spades, Diamonds and Clubs!"

"That's not true," answered Adrienne softly. And she wasn't lying. It was obvious to everyone but Hera herself that she was her mother's favorite. Perhaps it was because Hera was as unstable and messed up as the queen. Adrienne, however, took after her father, and was much more calm and level-headed. "You seem tired, sister. Why don't you sleep?"

"I'll try but I'll probably just lie there for hours," Hera scowled. This pleased Adrienne, because this way she had overcome her sister's emotional issues and wouldn't have to deal with them until the next day.

"Sleep well!" she called as she closed the door. Once outside, she shook her head and, with worry and disapproval filling her tone, asked herself "What is Wonderland going to do when she is the Queen of Hearts?"


	2. Hardly Royalty

The air was fresh and so was Hera's mind, after the ten hours of sleep she had had the previous night, thanks to Adrienne. This was why Hera decided to take a stroll in the garden, something she seldom did, for she hated the white roses her father insisted on planting. However, this afternoon she put that thought into the back of her mind and entered the humid air. Leisurely walking through the flowers and plants, she heard something behind one of the large hedges.

"Why don't you just tell mother? I'm sure she'd understand," the voice of her sister, Eleanora, sounded. Hera, interested, leaned closer.

"You know very well she won't," answered Marielle, Hera's third sister. Now, there was nothing unusual for Marielle and Eleanora to be talking-being on nineteen and eighteen they were closest in age, and had a special bond. But Hera wished to find out specifically what they were talking about.

"I don't think it will be a problem! All she has to do is consider you for one less kingdom. It doesn't matter."  
"But she'll be so hurt, knowing that I'd rather be anything other than the Queen of Hearts." With Marielle's words Hera gasped, yet skillfully lost her balance, which ended up making her topple through the hedge and land in front of Marielle and Eleanora. Eleanora shrieked as if she had seen a mouse (she really detested those creatures) and Marielle immediately scolded "Hera!" Eleanora was, sadly to say, the stupidest out of the four sisters, and paid much more attention to her strawberry blonde hair than to her books. Marielle was the smartest, and the sharpest; very straightforward, very controlling. Her hair was a deep auburn, while Adrienne's was brown, and Hera's raven black. The only explainable turnout was Hera's hair, for her mother's was also dark black. The other three were a mystery.

"I heard!" Hera screeched, and jumped from the ground, not even feeling a bit ashamed that she had just fallen through a hedge while trying to eavesdrop on her sisters. "I heard that you-" she pointed a shaky finger at Marielle. "That you don't want to be the Queen of Hearts!" Marielle narrowed her eyes at her sister but kept quiet. "How dare you betray Mother like this? How would you not consider it an honor to take her place?" Suddenly the events of the past day were forgotten, and only her sister's so-called betrayal preyed on Hera's mind. "I will go tell her! I will go tell Mother!" She started running toward the door, when Marielle caught up to her and spun her around.

"You will most certainly not! If you were anything like a real princess you would give your poor sister some mercy! Why, you're hardly royalty at all!" Letting these words melt into Hera's silly little head, Marielle let go off her shoulders, which she had been clutching threateningly.

"You're horrible," Hera whispered, then louder said "Even if you wanted to be the Queen of Hearts, Mother would never pick you!"

"Oh, no dear," Marielle answered. "I have much, much more." And with that she turned, and said to Eleanora "Come. We have better things to do." Locking arms, they strolled off in the other direction, leaving Hera standing there, wondering why her father loved those white roses so much.


	3. It All Happened So Fast

Hera's big brown eyes stared at her reflection in the mirror, as she fixed her crimson-colored hat onto her head. As she was about to tie the ribbon it was ripped from her head, which caused her to whip around her head. The only thing she saw was the small figure of her brother disappearing into the hall.

"Freddie!" she shrieked, tripped over her stool, then stood up and chaotically ran after her younger sibling. "Freddie, give it back!"

"Never!" he cried, turning around to see his sister's angry face. At this he laughed and faced forward again. They ran down one hall, then the other, until finally they ended up in front of Freddie's bedroom. He dashed through the door, shut it, and locked it just before Hera could grab the handle. Frustrated, she started pounding on the door.

"Freddie! Frederick, open this door right now! Freddie! Give me my hat!" She stopped pounding, reason being pure exhaustion. "Mother said I had to wear a hat if I wanted to go into town today."

Meanwhile, behind the door, Frederick was laughing until his stomach hurt. Hera was his favorite sister to bother. Adrienne was too patient, Marielle too scary, and Eleanora too uninterested. Hera threw a fit and freaked out, which Frederick enjoyed to the fullest extent.

Hera heard him laughing and stomped her feet, screaming now. "Goodness Freddie! You've had your fun! Now give me that-"

"Your presence is required in the Grand Hall, Princess Hera," a guard interrupted her screaming.

"I'm busy!" she shouted back.

"I'm afraid your father needs you there," he answered sternly. There was something about his tone of voice that made Hera almost frightened. And her father? Her father never called meetings-always her mother. The guard knocked on Frederick's bedroom. "Prince Frederick?"

"Yes?" he called from inside.

"Your presence is requested in the Grand Hall."

"Alright!" Frederick emerged, wearing a cheeky grin directed at Hera, reminding her of her hat. She narrowed her eyes at him, but they both followed the guard to the Grand Hall.

Marielle, Adrienne and Eleanora were already there waiting for them. Their father paced back and forth uncomfortably in front of them.

"I have some horrible news, my dears," he began. "Your mother...your mother...she's passed away."

You could have heard a feather drop.

Even Hera had nothing to say.


	4. Inheritance

Hera held back tears as the gown was slid over her head. The black and red fabric clung tightly to her, and the high funnell that lined the back of her neck itched a bit. The dress itself felt wrong on her; just the fact that she was wearing it made her skin crawl. Her maids tightened the strings on her corset, causing a sudden and sharp intake of breath. She slipped on her black heels and shifted around uncomfortable in them. They felt too big, even though she knew they were just her size.

Half an hour later Hera and her three sisters were standing in the town square, packed with all the people of their kingdom. The crowd didn't even have to guess what was about to happen; just by looking at the dresses they could tell.

"Welcome to the Crowning Ceremony!" the king boomed, starting off the performance. "I will cut straight to announcing the inheritance of each of the princesses. I will start with the Queen of Hearts. Princess Hera, would you please step forward." She took a deep breath and forced a smile. "You inherit the Kingdom of Hearts, and are now the Queen of Hearts." He stepped forward with the crown, which he held up for the people to see. They "ooh"ed and "ahh"ed. Hera's father leaned over and whispered in her ear "Would you like me to do it?" She shook her head violently and hissed a "no". Ripping the crown from his hands, she swallowed harshly and looked at it hesitantly. She knew that once it was placed on her head, she would be the Queen of Hearts, and her mother would be officially gone. She breathed out forcefully, and with one strong motion, buried the crown in her hair. The people of her kingdom cheered, and she did the best she could not to scream and cry. Wearing the dress, the shoes, the crown, nothing had ever felt so wrong in her life.

"Adrienne, please step forward." Hera's sister stepped forward, and acknowledged the crowd with a smile and a nod. "You will become the Queen of Diamonds." Her smile widened as the tiara was placed on her head, her silver dress sparkling in the shining sun. "Marielle." Marielle stepped forward, but kept a straight face and her hands on her hips. "You will become the Queen of Spades." The tiara was placed on her head quickly, and she nearly tripped over her green gown in her hurry to be finished with the process. When it was Eleanora's turn, she stepped forward and gave a blinding smile, accompanied with a winning wave. "You will be the Queen of Clubs." The golden tiara matched her gold dress perfectly.

When she got back in her chamber Hera ripped the dress to shreds.


	5. Off With His Head

"Your Majesty, one of the peasants from your village is here to see you," one of the dukes informed Queen Hera, as she sat on her throne fanning herself placidly.

"Send him in," she drawled. As Queen of Hearts, Hera spent most of her day sitting on her throne ordering her servants to bring her what she desired, and if that wasn't what she was doing, she was eating. Her once thin and fragile figure had now become thick and round, and now she tended to do more yelling than crying. It had been two years since her mother's death, yet she had changed completely, and as a young maiden of eighteen, was still unmarried.

"Your Highness," the peasant addressed her, once he walked into the room. He bowed deeply then nodded towards the dukes. The Queen took notice of his dirty rags he wore as clothing, and the streak of mud on his forehead. She scoffed in disgust; how she hated those lower than her.

So pretty much everyone.

Meanwhile in Adrienne's castle, she sat at a table filled with the dukes and duchesses, laughing and talking as if they were family. Her fiance, the son of one of the dukes, stood up to propose a toast.

"To a happy ever after," he chimed, and the sound of clinking glasses filled the air. He planted a kiss on Adrienne's cheek, and they continued to have a magnificent feast.

In Eleanora's castle she was staring at her reflection, admiring the new dress her husband had gotten for her.

"I'm so excited for the ball, Ingrid," she remarked to her lady-in-waiting. "And everything is in order for the servants' ball as well?"

"Yes, Your Majesty. We are excited as well."

"Do you think everyone will like my new dress?" the Queen of Clubs asked, inspecting herself from all angles.

"Oh yes, you look like a dream," was the satisfactory reply. "I'm sure you'll have a marvelous time."

The arrow pierced through the air, hitting the target directly.

"Nice shot, my Queen!" Marielle's archery coach praised. "You have so improved from your first lesson."

"I have, haven't I?" She smiled and lowered the bow. Suddenly she tossed it to her coach. "I'm going for a ride. Take care of my things, will you?" And she jogged off. Once she was out of earshot she laughed with glee. "It's so nice being able to do whatever you wish."

"What is your reason for being here?" Hera asked, glaring at the peasant.

"Your mother, the former queen, has wronged me." The Queen's eyes widened, but she kept quiet. "One spring I could not pay my taxes, so they were delayed until summer, where the taxpayer claimed I owed twice as much as I had in the spring. I was forced to succumb to this terrible injustice, and wished to speak to your mother herself, but now that she is deceased, I decided to address you instead." Hera rose in her chair, anger boiling inside of her.

"How dare you!" she screamed, hurling her fan across the room. He dodged it, glancing up at the Queen of Hearts with terror in his eyes. "How dare you insult my mother! What right do you have to speak of her in this way?" She ran up to him and pushed him to the ground in a very unladylike manner. "Guards, seize him!" Four immediately ran up and grabbed him. With a weary look in his eyes, the peasant gave up the struggle. Hera, with a crazed expression, shouted four words that would define her forever. "Off with his head!"


End file.
